#UC Berkeley VS University of Edinburgh- Biological Sciences

14 messages · Page 1 of 1 (latest)

swift badger
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Although I've already accepted my offer from Cal (kinda had to rip, but I can still afford to pull out), I recently received my offer from University of Edinburgh. I'm an international student (from India) and I'd be looking to work during my UG years to account for finances- bit tight on that. These are the course offerings:

UC Berkeley- intended MCB major (maybe pre-med?)
U of Edinburgh- BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences (Development, Regeneration and Stem Cells)

UC Berkeley Pros:
-name & prestige
-renowned for its research opportunities
-seems to have a good proportion of international students; culturally diverse
-faculty is top-notch

  • SF weather

UC Berkeley Cons:
-crime around/in campus + the area seems shady in general
-grade deflation; academically draining
-large student population that makes it difficult to approach profs

  • difficulty getting research opportunities due to cut-throat competition, and no. of students.
    -a bit on the steep side, financially speaking
  • infamous STEM weeder classes

U of Edinburgh Pros:
-the name & prestige

  • surprisingly ranked higher than Cal in the QS rankings(?)
  • Bit cheaper than Cal
    -Has a really interesting course choice
  • Edinburgh is a safe/ student friendly city and has a really cool community, social sphere

U of Edinburgh Cons:

  • isn't really good for research according to a few sources(My uncle who lives in London claims that its good, but research positions/projects are hard to get into in the UK and hence Cal would be better).
  • The weather (Although, that's not too big of a deal for me)

*I don't really have a lot of information about the other aspects of U of Edinburgh, any opinions/info would be appreciated.

royal iron
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I would definitely take into account the costs of everything. Cal’s housing is obviously more expensive, but you know what else is? Plane tickets to visit home and other non-direct education costs.

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If UoE fits your interests, I would give it a close look.

frozen silo
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the Berkeley area may have high crime but the area around the school has crime mostly in a nonviolent form (this ramps up though if you head to Oakland where armed robbery is common)

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honestly I think Berkeley is reasonably safe

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this is opposed to USC which is a gang area with high degrees of violent crime

swift badger
# frozen silo the Berkeley area may have high crime but the area around the school has crime m...

Oh okay. I've grown up in a sketchy area so I'm sorta used to/know how to navigate thru nonviolent crimes. Me (and my family's) primary concern was the issue surrounding gun violence - especially with the recent shelter-in-place situation at Cal.

The other big concern is that the cut-throat competition n huge class sizes at Cal, could make it difficult to approach profs and secure research ig? Would you say that that's pretty accurate?

And how big is the difference in the employment rates btwn the US and the UK? Like, is it more difficult to snag research opportunities- especially in the biosciences field? I thought Edinburgh had a pretty solid research dept. (I'm interested in their Astrobio tie-ups)

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*sorry if I'm bombarding you with questions 🙏

royal iron
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Class size isn’t a huge issue when approaching profs, just go out of your way to talk to them. Research positions will be competitive no matter where you go. I’m originally from Los Angeles with family in the Bay, it isn’t as bad as you’d think, especially if you plan to live on campus.

frozen silo
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This would probably be an issue on any university campus (At least in the US and not specific to Berkeley)

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The class sizes for underclassmen are indeed large, and competition can be found due to the school culture. Research can be limiting not because Berkeley has too little research going on but because everyone is fighting for the opportunity. So I think you're right on this

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Idk much about Edinburgh, but USA has better STEM employment and average pay if you check on Google